


Change of Routine

by AllThingsGeeky



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Anxiety, Bad Dreams, Insomnia, Mood Swings, Nightmares, PTSD, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker having an attitude, Sleep Deprivation, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony acting as Peter’s parental figure, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, irondad and spideyson, sleep issues, tears and tantrums
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2020-03-26
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:47:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23320420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AllThingsGeeky/pseuds/AllThingsGeeky
Summary: I wrote this at like 4 in the morning and now I’m posting it at 1 in the morning- sleep deprivation does weird things y’allTotal side note for those of you who haven’t seen Only You it’s actually a decent movie 👌
Comments: 9
Kudos: 65





	Change of Routine

“Hey Mr. Stark!”

“Hey kid.” 

That was their usual routine. That’s how it had always been. That’s how the conversation was meant to go. The first words out of the boy’s mouth- often the first dose of social interaction Tony would have all day- would always be those three syllables, without fail. 

But not today. 

It was a Thursday, Peter was scheduled to come in at half four after his AD club meeting but Happy had texted Tony to let the man know that it was cancelled- well he hadn’t specified that it was cancelled, but Peter wasn’t going and the kid had never missed a meeting a day in his life. Oh well, Tony wasn’t concerned he was more than ready to come and have Peter help him; he was drowning in work. If anything it was a relief to have the kid come over an hour earlier than usual to help out; that and he hadn’t seen his kid all week, hopefully he’d bring some of his good energy like he usually did because Tony was having a crappy day. 

But again. Not today. 

Peter walked in, slipped his bag off his shoulder and set it down by the door before scurrying off to the bathroom- that in itself wasn’t unusual. Not at all, the kid usually had to pee first thing when he got there, but he’d missed an important step. Their routine followed thusly; exchange short greeting, pee, grab a snack and eat while telling Tony all about his day, then get to work- that’s how it went. Ever since they’d started working together (well the snack was implemented later when the kid passed out that one time- but nevertheless). But Peter had forgone the first step and then their day quickly descended into shambles. 

Tony didn’t question it at first, figuring the kid just really had to pee or something. Even though he’d seen the kid almost explode before and he still took the time to say hi- he didn’t think _too_ _much_ of it. But he definitely took note when Peter came back out and sat across from him without grabbing a snack- that was out of character. In fact it went against Tony's rule; he always made sure the kid was fed and watered before they got down to business because god knows the boy wouldn’t ask for a break. 

Peter walked over, retrieved some tools out of his drawer on his bench and set them down; the whole time not even glancing in his mentor's direction. That was...odd. Peter usually had a smile plastered on his face from the minute he got into the lab right up until he left but the kid’s face was entirely blank. 

So Tony waited. He waited for a few minutes for the kid to get situated, setting up whatever it was he was working on before addressing the lack of acknowledgement. “Not even a hi?” 

“What?” Peter muttered lowly, still not gracing Tony with a glance, though his expression did change. He started to scowl. 

And as much as Tony hated to admit it, it really pissed him off. “Were you planning on talking to me today or-“

“Hello Mr. Stark.” Peter said flatly with a small sigh, rolling his eyes as he sat himself down. “Happy?” 

“No I’m not Happy, I’m Tony.” The man said dryly, expecting the usual response he got whenever he made a cheesy joke- but he got nothing. Not even a flicker of a smile or a quirked eyebrow, nada. He resisted the urge to wave his hand in front of the kid’s face, because wherever his mind was at it certainly wasn’t present in the room with his mentor. “Jeez kid, what’s gotten into you today?”

“Nothing.” Peter sighed again, though this time his voice lacked any bite. He sounded like a tired parent who’d answered the same question a hundred times- and if the kid was walking around with that kind of attitude Tony wouldn’t be surprised if he had to. 

Tony wanted to press the issue but he had to admit he felt a little..uncomfortable. Which was odd for him, he tended to have very little regard for social convention and he’d never felt awkward in his lab before- and certainly not with his favourite little person. The lab was his sanctuary and Peter was the only one he truly allowed to spend any time in there, but for some reason his little ray of sunshine had brought a storm cloud in with him and he didn’t really know what to do or say. 

He also knew how it felt to be pestered when he was in a bad mood. He happened to live with Captain Communication and nothing was worse than when he was having a bad day and someone kept picking at him to talk about it. So he left the kid alone, figuring that’s what he wanted. 

But what he didn’t expect was to be sitting in silence for almost a full hour. That had never happened with Peter, even in the early days when he was too shy to speak up he still had a thousand theoretical questions. Other than the squeaking of the boy’s chair as he shifted every so often the room was silent and Tony really, _really_ didn’t like it. The kid was there to help drown out his demons not encourage them to get louder; the longer the silence went on the more tense it grew, to the point Tony was struggling to focus on what he was meant to be doing. 

It seemed the boy wasn’t able to focus either. An hour or so into their very strange work session, Peter kept letting out little sighs and groans of frustration as whatever he was working on sparked, much to his dissatisfaction. Tony kept waiting for him to ask for help but he just didn’t- eventually grumbling something under his breath and pushing the project away, standing up and going to dig through one of their scrap bins to try and find something useful. 

“Need some help?” Tony asked after Peter still refused to open his mouth. 

“Nah I’ve got it.” The boy muttered, his voice slightly muffled and slurred by the fact that he barely parted his lips when he spoke; as though the energy it required to move his jaw was far too much for him. 

Once again Tony wanted to offer his help but thought better of it. After all, he’d been working with Peter for almost a year now and this was the first time he’d seen him in such a state. Part of him wanted to confront the issue but the rest of him knew it was better to let Peter come to him in his own time. That and Peter needed to learn how to speak up for himself, it wasn’t down to Tony to read his mind all the time (though in fairness, he’d gotten exceptionally good at it). 

“Do you have any arduinos small enough for this? I can’t find one.”

“What’re you trying to do?” He could’ve just told the kid where they were or shown him, but he was longing for conversation and it seemed the kid was throwing him a bone- or maybe he just really didn’t know where the processors were. Either way Tony was taking the opportunity to communicate with the kid and he was genuinely interested in what the boy wanted the item for. 

“It’s cool I found them.” Peter sighed. Tony felt his shoulders dip. So much for that idea then. Back to silence. “Can you show me how to attach it to this solenoid valve, please? I haven’t used this one before.” 

_Yes._ Tony felt a bit silly for getting a surge of excitement but _yes-_ an excuse to open dialogue. “Sure kid.” 

When he approached the kid’s work station he immediately noticed a bunch of silly mistakes that were way below Peter’s usual quality of work but he didn’t dare say anything; though apparently Peter was anticipating it. The second Tony opened his mouth Peter jumped on him. “I know, I know I got the wiring wrong. I’m gonna fix it in a second.”

“I wasn’t going to say that.” Tony muttered quietly and Peter gave him a dirty look. Sure _usually_ Tony would have picked at the kid for his sloppy work but Jesus even he knew when it was a bad time. Once Peter’s eyes stopped boring into him Tony went back to what he was originally going to say. “So how was school?”

“It was fine.” 

“Why was AD cancelled?”

“It wasn't, I just didn’t feel like going.” The teen replied shortly, offering the man no more explanation. 

“That’s not like you.” Tony said, allowing concern to seep into his tone. Peter just shrugged. The conversation fell silent again and once Tony was finished showing Peter what to do the air was tense, like the kid was somehow projecting energy into the room; and that energy said get the fuck away from me. For once Tony took the hint. 

He decided to grab himself a snack since he’d neglected to eat lunch that day (hey no one's perfect- at least he ate breakfast this time). He made his way over to the fridge half expecting Peter to show interest in the piles of junk food the man had hoarded in there; but when Tony turned around Peter was still hunched over his project like a little gargoyle. “You want something?”

“I ate in the car.” Peter said without looking up to see where Tony was gesturing. 

“Yeah well that was three hours ago.”

“I’m not hungry. I just wanna get this finished.” Peter said with finality, once again shutting the conversation down before it could even start. 

“Alright..” The man backed off, resigning himself to enjoy his secret sugar stash alone. He remembered he neglected to ask another question he always did; their routine being off completely threw him for a loop. He wasn’t sure when they’re routine became so much to him but a couple small hiccups and it was like he couldn't function. Maybe he was finally getting a taste of how Peter felt when his schedule was suddenly changed. “You got any homework?” 

“No, if I did I would’ve done it already.” Peter sighed again getting frustrated that Tony wouldn’t just leave him alone already. So finally the man did, leaving Peter to his own devices without another word. 

Tony spent the rest of the afternoon racking his brain trying to think of just what the hell he’d done to upset Peter so badly. There was no way the kid was just in a bad mood for no reason- well that could have been a possibility but not- not like that. Peter never got like that- a little sensitive when he was hungry or tired but never so blatantly pissed off. So Tony must have done something, but for the likes of him he couldn’t think what. Sure he’d had to cancel their after school sessions every day that week but when he spoke to him on the phone the boy seemed fine; a little disappointed but fine. It was work related, Peter understood, it couldn’t be helped and it wasn’t like Tony had never had to cancel a session before. Then again Tony knew better than anyone that Peter was good at seeming fine until he was at his breaking point, a trait they shared (or maybe Tony had passed down to him, but he tried not to think about that), so maybe the kid was upset at him about that after all. 

But on the other hand, every other time he’d upset Peter before the boy just avoided him like the plague. They hadn’t had a real _argument_ in a long time, and not a real bad one well- ever. But even in the small instances where Tony did something to tick Peter off the kid didn’t get angry, he turned it on himself and got upset- then he’d just avoid coming to the tower all together. He’d give excuses like he was sick or he had homework or he’d forgotten he agreed to babysit Ned’s nieces with him- but he’d never get grumpy with Tony. Not even once. Maybe the kid was finally comfortable enough with the man to show a little of that teenage brattiness Tony had heard so much about from Clint? But that still left the question, why was the kid so mad at him in the first place?

Tony was building himself up to ask that question. After all he had all evening to do so and he was trying to give the kid some space before he did, figuring Peter just wanted some time to cool off and unwind from whatever was upsetting him. Well he thought he had all evening but at quarter to five Peter started gathering his things and putting them away. “You don’t have to pack up.”

“Huh?” The boy looked up. 

“May texted me, she’s working late tonight, asked if you can stay over.” Tony had assumed the woman had already told the boy that but apparently not. Usually it wouldn’t have mattered, usually Peter was ecstatic at the idea of staying over. 

But like everything else that day the boy's reaction was all wrong. Instead of perhaps the flicker of a smile Tony had been hoping for, the boy looked even more upset than he had all day. “B-but..” 

“Is that a problem?” Okay now something was definitely wrong _really wrong,_ as if Tony didn’t know that already. Peter had never had an issue staying at the tower before. 

“Can’t I just go home?” Peter asked quietly and Tony would be lying if he said he wasn’t shocked. 

“If you really want to..” The man said earnestly. Of course he was confused and worried and a little hurt but he’d never tell the kid he couldn’t go home if he wanted to. That being said he couldn’t help but sound sad and it must’ve shown in his voice because Peter’s steely expression softened for the first time that day, looking guilty when he realised he’d hurt his mentor with that request. 

“I’ve just- I’ve got a lotta homework to do.” He said quickly, trying to think of an excuse that wouldn’t incriminate him or hurt Tony's feelings; although that was a good sign, the excuse itself was lame. 

“You told me you didn’t have any.” 

“Not homework- but, like, reading.” Peter fumbled with his backpack and his words, trying desperately to come across as convincingly as possible. 

But he failed miserably. As much as Tony had tried his best to leave the kid alone and wait for him to come to him, that clearly wasn’t about to happen; and he wasn’t about to let the kid go home and spend the night alone when he was in such a weird mood. Not only was the idea of Peter being home alone (at any time really) when he was upset heartbreaking, but it was also risky. Peter had a tendency to run from his problems- no literally run. He’d take himself out on patrol or go for a jog and Tony really, really didn’t think that was a good idea if the kid wasn’t in the right frame of mind. He knew from experience that his judgement and decision making would be vastly impaired and he couldn’t live with himself if Peter got himself hurt making some stupid decision all because Tony had let him go home. 

So no, sorry Peter, but you can’t go home just yet. He didn’t want to be overbearing but needs must- Tony sighed before calling the boy over to the couch as he finished gathering up the last of his things. “Kid, come sit down.”

Peter’s eyes flashed up and he shook his head. “I don’t wanna.” 

“Peter, come on, just for a minute.” Tony sighed in annoyance at the childish response. He bit back the urge to give the old ‘sometimes we have to do things we don’t want to do’ speech; but instead he went for the emotional approach, knowing Peter would be more likely to open up to him if he showed some vulnerability himself. “Please kid, come and talk to me.”

That got him. Tony saying please and using his first name was too much for Peter to ignore. The teenager stopped shoving books into his backpack and with a small sigh of his own moved to cross the room and join his mentor on the couch; albeit very reluctantly. 

Tony waited until the boy sat down to start questioning him again, trying his best not to be put off by the distance Peter had put between them. “What’s going on with you today, huh?”

The boy just shrugged. 

So Tony pressed on. “Are you upset with me about something?”

Peter instantly shook his head, in fact he looked almost offended by the idea. “No, of course not.” 

What did the kid mean ‘of course not’- he’d been acting funny with him all day what was Tony meant to think? Then again the kid was well- _a kid._ Maybe he didn’t realise how his attitude translated or he thought he was being much more surreptitious than he really was. “I know I fucked your routine up by taking a few days out this week-“

“It’s okay Mr. Stark, really, I get it.” Peter mumbled tiredly. And Tony deduced that he was telling the truth, even if he did sound irritated by the question. 

“Did you have a bad day at school?” Tony asked tentatively. 

Tony wasn’t met with the harsh quick _no_ that would’ve been indicative of a bad day at school; whenever the kid had a rough time with bullies he was always quick to shut the conversation down. Instead Peter just shrugged his shoulders lightly and looked down at the floor. “School was fine.”

“You gotta help me out here kid.” They really weren't getting anywhere playing twenty questions and the longer they spoke without anything being resolved, the more agitated Tony got. He’d noted the boy was a little paler than usual, not alarmingly so but slightly, and he had dark circles forming under his eyes. “Do you not feel good?”

“Tony I already told you _I’m fine.”_ Peter snapped. Peter _never_ snapped at Tony, even when the man was deliberately winding him up. In fact he’d never heard Peter speak in such a harsh tone and it took a lot of willpower not to look visibly alarmed by it. But Peter did, he blinked rapidly for a second before he realised just who he was speaking too and quickly tried to backtrack, softening his tone. “I’ve just- I’ve just got a headache.”

Tony didn’t believe him. He’d seen Peter with a headache, a migraine, the flu- the kid never got snappy when he was sick. He got sleepy, and whiny and _clingy_ but he never got snappy. All the kid wanted to do when he didn’t feel well was snuggle under a blanket and sleep. Even though Tony didn’t believe a headache was what was causing the boy’s temperament he glanced at the clock and realised Peter had neglected another staple in their routine; a nap. Between four thirty and five thirty, the kid’s energy levels always began to slowly decline; going from a hyperactive puppy when he first arrived to a sluggish tangle of mistimed limbs later in the afternoon before Tony sent the boy to lay on the couch for an hour before dinner- on the nights he was staying over at least. 

Hence why Tony suggested a perfectly reasonable remedy to the boy’s, albeit fake, ailment. “You wanna go take a nap-“

_“No.”_

Oh...kay, Tony did not expect that kind of reaction. Peter practically _growled_ at the suggestion, his eyes darting up at his mentors with a mixture of anger and..fear? That wasn’t just the ‘I'm fifteen, I don't need a nap’ stare that he sometimes got, that was something else. 

Despite wanting to ask just what the hell was so wrong with taking a nap Tony wanted more so to calm the kid down; because he saw how quickly the kid's expression changed after he snapped and how his chest started to rise and fall a lot quicker. “Jeez, I was just asking- what’s wrong with you?”

“I don’t..I don't know..” Peter whispered, his face turning pink as he hung his head. Then he sniffled a bit and covered his face- oh god was he crying? What in the hell-

“Woah, hey, hey kid I didn’t- Pete I’m sorry I didn’t mean it like that.” Tony said rushedly, scooting up the sofa so he could wrap an arm around the boy’s shoulders, thinking he’d pushed the kid over the edge with his tactless wording. Christ, he knew it was common for teenagers to have mood swings but damn- he was getting emotional whiplash. There was no way he’d been that bad when he was a kid- no wait scratch that, he’d been a lot _worse_ in a lot of ways- but his kid- Peter had never been like that before. 

“It’s not you.” Peter sniffled again, this time wiping his eyes with his sleeve. “I can’t.” 

“Can’t what kid?” Tony was at a complete loss now. He wasn’t sure what part of their conversation the boy was referring to or even if that statement pertained to their conversation at all. It all seemed rather existential in that moment and Tony was trying not to freak out but he’d suggested a nap and now the kid was _crying-_

“I can’t nap.” Peter sobbed brokenly, this time being completely unable to hold it back and he folded in on himself like a piece of paper. 

“Why not? Of course you can.” Tony asked confusedly. He’d never had any issue with Peter taking a break for anything before, in fact quite the contrary; he usually had to push Peter into basic acts of self care. “You know I don’t mind if you’re tired.”

“No Mr. Stark I mean I _can’t.”_ The boy continued to cry, though he didn’t resist when Tony pulled him closer so he was leaning on the man’s chest; fully embracing the hug. When Peter calmed down enough to realise once again _who_ he was hugging, he chanced a look up at his mentor who was studying him with confused, concerned eyes. “I just- I-I can’t sleep.” 

Despite Peter’s attempts to explain, Tony still didn’t understand. The kid wasn’t saying he didn’t _want to-_ which would make sense if he was having nightmares again but it was sounding more as though he was physically unable to, and Tony wasn’t sure which was more concerning. He knew Peter had had more than a few...issues regarding his sleep over the past few months. May had mentioned that his nightmares and the result of said nightmares were becoming more frequent- but he had yet to see any evidence of that for himself. Whenever Peter stayed over he slept soundly, or at least Tony thought he did…

“Why not, P? Are you scared somethings going to happen..?” Tony asked as delicately as he could, not wanting to upset Peter even more. He wasn’t exactly supposed to know about _that,_ May had told him in confidence considering Peter slept over occasionally and she’d wanted Tony to be prepared. 

Fortunately Peter didn’t get what Tony was hinting at; misinterpreting the man’s question as being about general worries as opposed to something specific. “I-I don’t know. I don’t know if it’s an anxiety thing or-or what but I just _can’t._ I lay there awake for hours and hours and it just _doesn’t happen-_ then I psych myself up about it like- ‘oh if I fall asleep _right now_ I’ll get four hours ten minutes and fifty four seconds of sleep before my alarm goes off’- and the clock keeps ticking and ticking and in the end I’m like ‘screw it I’ll just get up’- otherwise I lay there and just keep thinking and thinking about all the bad stuff- I’m so _tired Tony.”_

“Oh kiddo.” Tony sighed sadly. That explained everything. The attitude, the sloppy work, the lack of conversation- it wasn’t that he didn’t want to, he was too tired to. The man knew what it was like to suffer from insomnia, he had for most of his adult life, what with the various traumas and illicit substances he’d put into his body his internal clock hadn’t worked properly since he was- well since he was younger than Peter and he knew how much it sucked. He certainly didn’t want his protege following in his footsteps in that regard and by the sound of things this hadn’t been a deliberate venture on the boy’s part. From what Peter was describing it wasn’t as though he was staying up on purpose to get things done, he was _trying to_ but he _couldn’t._ No wonder the boy was frustrated. “How long has this been going on?” 

“A-a-all week.” Peter sniffled. “It’s happened before b-b-but never this b-bad, not every n-night.” 

“Have you told May?” 

“Y-yeah.” Peter mumbled and Tony just raised his eyebrows and waited for the kid to tell him the truth. “I mean kinda- but she just wanted me to t-take some of my old medicine but it doesn’t work anymore.” 

Tony nodded understandingly. He knew for the kid to have even mentioned it to May in the first place was a big deal, usually Peter didn’t want to bother her for anything. “How much sleep did you get last night kid?”

“None.” Peter whimpered and Tony cringed. With the kid’s metabolism that was equivalent to at least three days without sleep; and though physically he wouldn’t be damaged like a normal person would it must’ve been extremely mentally taxing, and that was evident in the boy's face. As soon as he admitted it aloud his face crumpled again and fresh tears started running down his face. “I didn’t even bother trying, I haven’t been to bed yet. I’m so tired.” 

“Alright, alright, it’s okay, come here.” Tony sighed, quickly wrapping the boy in a hug again when he dissolved into sobs. He couldn’t help but feel a little relieved that the issue was so easily fixable, but it broke his heart to see Peter so upset. The kid needed his eight hours to function and clearly he wasn’t handling the sleep deprivation very well at all. “We’ll get you some good rest tonight buddy, okay? Don’t worry about it.” 

“I keep getting a couple hours here, a couple hours there, but they don’t make me feel any better they just make me mad- and when I do sleep I keep having bad d-dreams.” Peter stammered out as he sat up, hiccuping and trying desperately to stop the flow of tears spilling down his cheeks. It was humiliating but he just couldn’t stop; the lack of sleep had completely knocked out his emotional control. 

“Do you have any idea what could be causing it?” Peter shook his head then Tony thought about it. The past week the kid’s routine had changed a lot; he hadn’t been seeing Tony after school and the man was his point of contact, so he’d lost his number one confidante for the past four days. Not to toot his own horn but Tony knew Peter told him _everything._ All about his day, the good, the bad and the ugly- he was like the boy's personal diary and he had no problem fulfilling that role. But the kid had barely spoken to him all week- sure he’d texted him a couple times here and there but it wasn’t the same. Usually May would’ve been there to pick up the slack but May had been- ahhh. “Kid, has May been working nights all this week?”

“Mhm.” 

“You think maybe that’s it?” Tony asked, running his hand up and down the kid’s arm. 

A look of realisation crossed Peter’s face, swiftly followed by one of embarrassment. “Well I don’t- I don’t know maybe, I guess b-but it’s never been a problem before. I’m not a little kid- I-I-I can stay at home alone.”

“Pete when it’s one night in a row, you probably didn’t notice a huge difference.” 

“But-but I’ve been okay on the weekends.” Peter said defensively. It really hadn’t occurred to him that his aunt's absence would be causing such a profound effect, but he had to admit it made sense. 

“Yeah because you either stay up all night on your computer with Ned or…” Tony gave the kid a look and waited for him to finish the thought. 

“I-I’m here.” Peter sighed dejectedly. It was true he’d never really spent a night alone before that week; and of course with it being school nights he and Ned didn’t stay up until gone five in the morning playing games. He hadn’t thought about it consciously, he’d just felt an overwhelming sense of anxiety and fear every night as soon as he laid down and now it- now it all made perfect sense. Perfect embarrassing sense. 

“Exactly.” Tony sighed. He sat back a little and put his hands on Peter's shoulders, pushing the kid into sustaining eye contact for the first time that day. “Be honest with me, were you scared to sleep on your own?”

The boy bit his lip and looked away, hesitating or a moment before he gave a very slight nod. His cheeks were absolutely flaming. “The..the nightmares are worse when I’m by myself.” 

Tony couldn’t help but let his face convey how sad he felt for the boy; he knew exactly how it felt to be too scared to sleep alone, fuck he still had days like that when Pepper wasn’t there. “Oh kid.” 

“It’s not- it’s not like I’m running into May’s room every night or something- m’not five.” He sniffled indignantly, wiping the tears off of his face and straightening up. Now he was really thinking about it, things were starting to fall into place. “B-but when I wake up and I’m freaked out- just knowing she’s there is..it’s enough. But on Monday I woke up and all the lights were off and her door was open and I thought..”

“You thought what?” 

“Ugh it’s so stupid!” Peter cried out angrily, pressing the palms of his hands into his eyes trying to force the tears leaking out of them to go back in. “I thought her robe hanging on the back of the door was a person and I- and I freaked out and..” 

“Pete, it’s okay.” Tony shushed him gently as the kid trailed off. Peter didn’t respond, he just sat there shaking, staring angrily at the floor and periodically scrubbing at his face with the back of his hand. “Kid really it’s okay.” 

“No it’s not okay!” Peter snapped, but this time Tony knew it wasn’t directed at him. “I’m meant to be a superhero Tony! I’m not supposed to be scared of the dark anymore!” 

“Superheroes know better than anyone how scary the dark can be.” Tony said levelly. It was true, who better understood what things lurked in the dark then the people expected to fight them? Peter had his own taste of that more than a couple times, Tony knew his fear of what he couldn’t see wasn’t unreasonable in the slightest. “You’ve been through a lot, kid. Cut yourself some slack.”

The man’s words seemed to resonate but Peter still looked absolutely furious with himself. Tony could understand somewhat, it must’ve been mortifying to admit to one of your childhood heroes that you were too scared to sleep by yourself- but Tony didn’t see it that way. “You could’ve called me if you were scared-“

“Oh yeah because that’s not embarrassing.” Peter laughed joylessly; trying desperately to reject the man’s attempts to comfort him. “You already think I’m a baby.”

“No I don’t.”

“Do too.” The teenager spat bitterly, shifting so that he was facing away from his mentor again. All the kid needed to do was cross his arms and pout and he would’ve looked like the poster child for typical teenagers. Again Tony was faced with the boy’s emotions changing all over the place so he had to change tact. 

“Don’t put words in my mouth kid, I don’t.” Tony said sternly before he took a step back. He knew what the kid was doing, it was a move he’d practically pioneered himself; Peter was trying to goad him into an argument so Tony would eventually stop trying to comfort him and leave him alone. But two can play at that game Parker, Tony wasn’t budging. “Look, here’s what we’re gonna do. We’re gonna eat dinner down here- I don’t think you can handle all the commotion upstairs tonight, huh?” 

Peter looked up with a small wince, essentially giving the man his answer. As much as the kid adored all of Tony’s housemates, all the noise and conversations and possible questions about his weird mood seemed too much to bear. 

“No, so we’ll wait for everyone else to go off and do their thing, then we’ll go upstairs and watch Star Wars for a couple hours, get you wound down. Then we’ll see about getting you a good night's sleep, okay?” 

The plan sounded great, more than Peter could have ever asked for; which is why he shook his head and gave the man a sheepish look. “You don’t have to do all that.” 

“I know.” Tony shrugged simply. “Now what do you wanna eat?” 

Once he was fed it was a struggle to keep the boy awake. After talking about what was upsetting him it was like a weight had been lifted, leaving the kid in his usual cuddly whiny phase that Tony was far more emotionally equipped to handle. It wasn’t long before Peter was struggling to keep his eyes open, occasionally nodding off before his chin hit his chest and he shook himself awake again. 

“Couple more hours bud.” Tony chuckled, ruffling the boy's hair. Peter had long since given up working himself as he was making too many mistakes, so he was occupying his time sitting next to Tony and watching him instead. 

“Can’t I just go lay down now?” The boy asked, trying but failing to keep the whine out of his voice. 

“It’s only 7:30 if you go to bed now you’ll be up all night.” Tony said knowingly. “You're better off staying up and resetting.” 

“Yeah I guess.” Peter pouted, relenting. He resigned himself to his fate by laying his head on the desk and fiddling with Tony’s tools as he set them down; ultimately being a hindrance as opposed to help but the man didn’t mind. He was used to Peter having to occupy his hands and so long as the kid was talking to him again he didn’t care if he had to redo the entire project again tomorrow. 

“I’ll let you sleep in but not for too long kid or we’ll be back where we started.” The man chuckled lightly.

“Mr. Stark I can’t sleep in. I've got school tomorrow.” 

Oh right, Tony had forgotten it wasn’t a usual Friday night sleepover. “Meh, a day off won’t kill you, I’ll claim it’s a work thing so it doesn’t affect your attendance.”

“Won’t May get mad at you if you keep me off on a school day?” Peter mumbled, his face still pressed into the desk and this time his eyes were closed. The kid was half asleep but still worried about Tony getting in trouble- cute. But he wasn’t wrong May hadn’t let Peter stay over on a school night before for that very reason. 

“I’m on your contact list now remember? May doesn’t need to know.” Tony tapped the side of his nose, a sign the kid was going to have to keep that tidbit of information to himself. 

At around nine o’clock JARVIS chimed to let them know the living room was clear. Usually that would’ve been far too early for the other avengers to retire to their quarters but Tony had sent a text to the group chat for them to make themselves discreet- and of course, not mention to Peter that they knew why Tony wanted them to make themselves scarce. 

So they made their way upstairs, Peter getting progressively more withdrawn again; going from cuddly to tense and anxious, and he kept glancing at the time on his phone. Though Peter was beyond tired Tony knew he was getting agitated again the closer they got to his bedtime.

He tried to get the kid to settle, but Star Wars, as much as he loved it, was too familiar and it wasn’t cutting it. The kid was too used to every single frame so it wasn’t distracting him in the way Tony had intended- and on the flip side it was too action packed to really calm the boy down. So he suggested they find another movie but Peter remained skeptical. “Here why don’t we watch something else?”

“Like what?” Peter asked when Tony started to dig through the DVD cabinet under the TV. 

“Hmmm like- this.” Tony pulled out an older looking movie with a picture of two people dancing in front of a fountain; the words ‘Only you’ in italic writing at the top. “Ever seen this before?”

Peter shook his head with a light laugh. “You hate romcoms.” 

“Yeah it’s one of Pep’s- or maybe Steve’s I can never tell these days.” Tony shrugged studying the back of the cover. He’d never seen it either but it seemed light enough not to give the kid any more nightmares and to be honest he couldn’t be bothered to keep looking. “Wanna give it a try?”

“Sure why not.” Peter shrugged. 

The movie was easy enough to follow and mildly entertaining- to Tony at least, but Peter seemed to be enjoying it. Funnily enough the main character was called Peter too; but what was even funnier was the striking resemblance the character on screen had to the man watching it- at least in the teen’s humble opinion. 

“How can you not see that? He looks just like you!” 

Tony made a face and tilted his head slightly, studying the on-screen-Peter to try and find similar characteristics. “Meh, maybe a little around the eyes.” 

“He looks _exactly_ like you, are you crazy?!” Peter shook his head aghast. “If you shaved your beard you could be twins!”

“How would you know you’ve never seen me without a beard.” Tony frowned, hoping Pepper hadn’t dug out the photo album behind his back again. 

But Peter wasn’t paying attention, he was too busy pointing incredulously at the screen. “And she looks just like May! This is so weird- how are you not seeing this?!” 

“Okay that I can see a little bit- and hey wouldn’t mind kissing your aunt.” Tony smirked when Peter grimaced. 

“Gross Tony.” 

“The point of this is to calm you down not get you hyped up again, maybe we should go back to Star Wars-“

“No! I wanna see if Faith chooses him after all!” 

Towards the end of the movie Tony lost interest and decided to make himself busy finalising the last step in the get Peter ready to sleep plan. Whilst the kid was distracted watching the two on screen lovers rendezvous at an airport he slipped into the kitchen and made him and Peter some hot chocolate. The teen was clearly surprised when Tony returned as he’d never so much as seen the man touch a stove before but he graciously accepted the cup anyway; and took a few gulps before he became apprehensive and put the cup down again, only taking a few cautionary sips here and there. 

It was unspoken but Tony could tell the kid was worried about consuming too many fluids before bed. “Don’t worry bud, if something happens it’s not a big deal.” 

“I’m not a little kid, Tony.” 

“I never said you were.” The man said lightly with a slurp of his own beverage. He was content to leave it there so he wouldn't add fuel to the fire and get Peter all defensive again. Once the movie had ended and their cups were empty Tony turned back to his very sleepy Spider-Kid, who looked like he was about to pass out right there. “You ready to lay down?”

“Mm..five more minutes.” Peter mumbled as he sat himself up, rubbing his eyes tiredly in an attempt to wake himself up. 

“Okay.” Tony said gently. As much as he wanted to adhere to the kid’s usual bedtime he didn’t mind being a little lenient just this once. But five minutes quickly turned into ten and Peter had yet to move from the couch. He was almost drifting off leaning against Tony’s shoulder before the man gently jostled him. “Go on, Underoos.” 

Peter sat up, blinking himself awake and stood up. He started to walk around the sofa but one look down the hallway to his bedroom and the boy's eyes widened. He stood frozen for a moment, bar from shuffling his feet every so often.

“You want me to come and-“

“Not it’s- it’s fine.” Peter shook his head quickly before Tony could even suggest- well anything. The idea of the man having to do anything else for him was absolutely mortifying, let alone tucking him in. Ugh, with a shudder the teen wondered when he’d let himself get so comfortable, so pathetic. Tony wasn’t May, he wasn’t his dad, this was so not his job. “Goodnight Mr. Stark. Thanks for everything.”

“Goodnight kiddo, and don’t mention it. Just yell if you need me, yeah?” 

“And I’m-“ The kid cut himself off suddenly running back around the sofa to give his mentor a hug.“I’m sorry about earlier. You know..not saying hi to you and just- well generally being a dick. I didn’t mean to be mean I just-“

“I understand Pete.” Tony chuckled into the boy's shoulder, since the kid had yet to unwrap his arms from around his neck. He truly did understand, lord knows he was a touchy asshole whenever he was overtired. Which was most of the time. But anyway. “It’s all forgotten about okay? You just get some rest.” 

“Mkay. But I’m sorry. And thank you again. For like, everything.” Peter muttered, giving his mentor one last bone crushing squeeze before he released him and walked back to his room. “Night.”

“G’night bud.” Tony called back. Once Peter had retired to his room he stayed in the living room for a while, before deciding to head back down to the lab to try and catch up with the work they’d missed out on that afternoon. On his way to the elevator he noticed Peter left his door open, so he left the hall and common room lights on; even though they were automatic and turned on when anyone walks in anyway he wanted to give the kid that extra level of security. 

Tony only spent around an hour downstairs before he started to get tired himself; that and he was bored without Peter down there to bounce ideas off of. So he took himself back upstairs and started getting ready for bed. He was in the midst of brushing his teeth when he heard a very quiet tapping followed by his bedroom door whooshing open- revealing a small disheveled looking figure on the other side. “Oops-“

“Kid? You okay?” Tony called, poking his head out of the bathroom door. Clearly the boy was surprised the door opened automatically but Tony had set it to open for Peter without the need for a code in case he needed him- and it looked like the boy really did need him. 

Peter was shuffling uncomfortably, twisting the cuffs of his hoodie with his hands as he started rambling apologies. “Yeah I’m- I’m sorry I didn’t- I shouldn’t have knocked- I just wanted to see if you were awake, I’m sorry Mr. Stark- I should’ve stayed in my room and-“ 

“It’s okay, kid really, it’s okay.” Tony said rushedly, quickly ducking back into the bathroom to spit into the sink and wipe his mouth before he went and retrieved the red faced child from the doorway. “Did you manage to sleep at all?”

Peter gave him a small nod but very quickly his face crumpled. “Had the dream again.”

Tony let out a small sigh. ‘Again’ meant one from the plethora of Peter’s recurring nightmares had decided tonight of all nights to rear its ugly head. “Which one?” 

“‘Bout the house.” Peter whimpered. 

Oh god not the one about the house. It wasn’t a trauma dream, luckily, but it was still nothing short of terrifying. Peter had told him about the recurrent dream before and the way he described it was enough to freak Tony out. The nightmare always started with Peter running away from someone, into a house that he for some reason recognised as his own though the kid had never lived anywhere but his two bed apartment; a real old, creepy run down Victorian place. Once he locked all the doors and windows and finally felt safe enough, Peter would run and hide himself in his bed. But when he layed down he’d look across the room at a mirror that stood opposite the bed, and when he’d glance down he’d see the reflection man he’d been running from laying right. Under. His bed. The first time Peter had told him about it it creeped Tony out enough to give him goosebumps- and no way, he was not having any of that tonight. Not when his intern hadn’t slept in over twenty four hours. 

“Right that’s it, come on.” Tony pointed towards his own bed. “Into bed with you.” 

“But Tony I-“ 

“I’ll sleep on the futon if that’s what you’re worried about.” Tony said simply, pointing a thumb towards the sofa bed that sat in the other corner of his bedroom. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d given up his bed to a scared superhero and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last, he was more than prepared. 

Peter shook his head adamantly. “No I don’t mind- and I’m not kicking you out of your own bed. I shouldn’t need to stay in your room anyway I’m not a-” 

“Uh uh- cut that shit out. I don’t mind you sleeping in here with me. If you’re comfortable I’m comfortable, kid.” The man shrugged. It wasn’t as though they hadn’t shared a bed before during missions and the like; but in fairness that had been due to necessity as opposed to comfort. But either way Tony had no issue with it. He gestured for the kid to climb onto the bed whilst he finished brushing his teeth and by the time he came out of the bathroom Peter had made his decision. 

“I-I want you to stay up here with me, uh, please..” Peter asked in a tiny voice. Luckily he was too tired to be as embarrassed as he usually would, and Tony couldn’t help but think how adorable the kid looked. He looked so small in the middle of the California king on his own and his hair was a curly mess. 

“Scoot over then that’s my side.” Tony chuckled as he approached the bed but Peter gave him a pitiful look. “Or do you wanna be near the door..?” 

“No it’s uh..the mirrors..” Peter whispered, pulling the comforter up to his nose as he glanced over at the doors of the walk in wardrobes that lined one side of Tony’s bedroom; doors that were floor to ceiling length mirrors. Ah. Yeah. Tony didn’t particularly want to see the underside of his bed after imagining that creepy dream either. 

“Oh, sorry bud.” The man said easily. It was a simple fix; a few of the people who had uh- occupied Tony’s room in the past weren’t a fan of the giant mirrors either so he’d come up with a back up plan. Couple taps on his tablet and the mirrors faded to black, gotta love technology. “Is that better?” 

The boy was instantly more relaxed and actually allowed himself to lay down once the reflective surfaces were dulled. “Mhm.” 

“You ready to get some sleep now?” Tony asked softly, brushing a couple loose curls away from the boy's forehead as he nodded. The action had been completely instinctual, he hadn’t even realised he was doing it until the kid made a little noise of contentment. 

“M’sorry you’d gotta do this.” The kid whispered, his tiredness depleting his understanding of the English language; but Tony didn’t care to correct his grammar. All he cared about was getting his kid some well needed sleep. 

“Don’t be, kid, I don’t mind. You’d do it for me.” Tony yawned. “Goodnight buddy.” 

“Nunight m’ster Stark, love you.” The boy mumbled into his pillow just as he drifted off to sleep, with his mentor still petting his hair. 

“I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this at like 4 in the morning and now I’m posting it at 1 in the morning- sleep deprivation does weird things y’all 
> 
> Total side note for those of you who haven’t seen Only You it’s actually a decent movie 👌


End file.
